WOOSTER, Ohio – Glen Grumbling never went to culinary school, but he watched and learned as his family cooked meals growing up in Hinkley, eventually turning a hobby into a family business.
- Top-quality ingredients and service have always been the winning formula for Broken Rocks Cafe in the Northeastern Ohio college town of Wooster.
- The restaurant, which has been open for the past 12 years, is known for several dishes made from scratch and its support of local farmers.
- Broken Rocks Cafe & Bakery is located at 123 East Liberty Street in Historic Downtown Wooster.
He and his wife Lisa first began their restaurant venture nearly 20 years ago in Loudonville and now own the Broken Rock Café in Wooster.
“If you looked where I started as a dishwasher, having as many seats as we have now to feed, that would have been hard to envision that fully. It's a team sport...when I started in Loudonville I was the cook, and now I'm just one of the many,” said Grumbling.
And a dozen years ago the two chose to raise their three girls in the rapidly developing community of Wooster. The Broken Rocks Cafe is named after a town on the shores of Lake Huron in Michigan where co-owner Lisa Grumbling grew up.
“My wife and I were married there. And actually the bread, I collected wild grapes that I created this starter from, so all the bread goes back to there,” said Grumbling.
Besides artisan-crafted bread and desserts, including fan favorites chocolate custard and white velvet cake with local berries, the restaurant is known for its polenta and shrimp with roasted red pepper sauce, seasonal peach, walnut, goat cheese and spinach salad, margarita pizza with homemade crust and local tomatoes, and fettuccine and mussels.
“The philosophy has always been to do simple, local food as well as we can,” said Grumbling.
“This restaurant stays busy because we appeal to a large crowd of people, kids, older people, businessmen. So, we have a pretty large menu and a wide selection,” said Chef Sarah Henley.
The Grumblings recently added an adjoining Gastropub next door.
All three of their daughters also work at the restaurant.
The Grumbling family says they appreciate all the support over the years—and they relish their role as one of the cornerstones of downtown Wooster.
“It has a little bit of everything, I mean it is a very tight-knit community, with a lot of people who want things to succeed,” said Grumbling.